The path I take with you has no end, like a circle
by thegirl20
Summary: Some missing scenes from the week of Rhona and Pete's engagement party. (Charity/Vanessa)


**Tuesday **

After Brenda's less than subtle hints, Vanessa spends the afternoon mulling over the possibilities for making Rhona's engagement feel special. She googles 'engagement parties' for ideas but comes up blank except for a couple of party games that look like they might be a laugh. Closing the laptop she sits back against the sofa and sighs. The door opens behind her and she cranes her neck, smiling when she sees who it is.

"Hey, you." She accepts the kiss Charity drops on her forehead.

"Hiya." Charity yawns and flops down on the couch beside Vanessa, draping herself against her side. "I'm shattered."

"Well, you were up at the crack of dawn with the drayman, weren't you? Letting Chas have a lie in. _And _you're doing this brewery conference gubbins so she doesn't have to." Vanessa wraps an arm around Charity's shoulders, letting her settle in more comfortably. "You're bound to be knackered."

"Three flaming days!" Charity toes off her shoes and curls her legs up under herself. "You'd think they'd prefer their pub owners to be behind the bar flogging their beer, instead of traipsing round exhibitions and going to AGMs or whatever. Chas owes me, big time." Charity turns and yawns into Vanessa's shoulder. "This being considerate thing isn't all it's cracked up to be. I'm thinking of giving it up."

Vanessa laughs. "You're not fooling me, Charity Dingle. You're much nicer than you let people think you are."

Charity huffs. "And whose fault is that?" She pokes Vanessa's stomach. "Yours. With all your sunshine and optimism and rainbows."

"Stop giving me all the credit," Vanessa counters, squeezing Charity tighter. "You're nice. Like it or not."

"Whatever." She lifts her head and props her chin on Vanessa's shoulder, eyebrows lifted hopefully. "Am I nice enough to earn a little shoulder rub?"

Vanessa grins and rolls her eyes. "Oh, I suppose so. Take your blazer off and turn around."

Shrugging out of her jacket, Charity twists on the couch so her back is to Vanessa, who sits up to accommodate the change in position. "Right, babe, get stuck in. And feel free to not be gentle. I can't tell you how many conversations about beer taps I had to grit my teeth and smile through today."

"Awww, you poor thing." Vanessa starts working the knots out of Charity's shoulders, rubbing and kneading. She enjoys the little noises of contentment Charity lets out whenever she digs her thumbs into a particularly tense muscle. She keeps going until she's sure the tightness has gone, running her thumbs gently over her shoulders. "That better?"

"Yeah." Charity rolls her shoulders. "Yeah, I needed that, ta."

"You're welcome." She presses a kiss to the side of Charity's neck. "Oh, listen, while I remember, can I use the pub for a little party kind of thing on Thursday?"

"Course you can, babe." Charity leans back and rests their cheeks together. "What for? Did the Vets' win Best Castrators in Yorkshire or summat?"

"I'm not sure that's a category in the RCVS Awards," Vanessa says, sliding her arms around Charity's waist. "No. It's for Rhona and Pete's engagement."

"Eh?" Charity half twists her neck to look at Vanessa. "They got engaged ages ago. Bit late for a party, innit?"

"Well, yeah, but I feel like everybody just kind of brushed over it." Vanessa bites her lip. She feels responsible for that. She's the closest thing to family Rhona's got in the area, and she's been too wrapped up in her own life to pay attention to this really big thing happening in her best mate's life. "I think she deserves having a bit of a fuss made over her after the year she's had."

"Yeah, go for it, fill your boots," Charity says. "I mean, I'll miss most of it 'cause this thing runs on till later on Thursday, but as long as people are paying for drinks, you'll not hear me complaining."

"Thank you." Vanessa smiles against Charity's cheek. "It's quite handy this. Having a fiancée with room for a function."

"Mmmhmm." Charity snuggles closer and yawns. "Well, this very long day of being nice to folk has really taken it out of me, so I'm gonna have an early night." There's a pause, but Vanessa knows what's coming next. "Fancy joining me?"

"Thought you were knackered?" Vanessa's hand creeps up underneath Charity's blouse, barely brushing over warm skin.

"Not _that _knackered," Charity says, catching Vanessa's hand and shoving it higher.

Her hand slides up, cupping Charity's breast and squeezing gently. "Oh, go on then."

* * *

**Wednesday**

The following evening, Charity's exhausted again, and this time their early night _is _an actual early night. Only Vanessa can't seem to get to sleep. Her conversation with Rhona is running on a loop in her head and she can't shake the feeling that something's very wrong with the whole set-up.

When Charity proposed to her, she wanted to shout it from the rooftops. She wanted everybody to know how happy she was and how in love they both were. Rhona just doesn't seem to feel that way. If anything, it seems like she's _grateful_ that Pete has stuck around. And, yeah, okay, that's fine. Charity's expressed similar feelings to her about that whole thing with Bails and everything surrounding it. But that's can't be the reason you marry someone. Vanessa's never felt like Charity's with her out of some sort of gratitude. And Rhona shouldn't be with Pete for that reason either.

"What're you thinking about?" Charity's voice is muffled against the back of her shoulder, but the suddenness of it in the dark makes her jump slightly.

"What? Nothing." She rubs Charity's thigh where it's resting over her own. "It's nothing. You get some sleep, eh?"

There's a warm exhalation on the back of her neck. "I can't sleep with your mind ticking away like Big flaming Ben." Charity's arms tighten around her briefly. "So come on, out with it."

Vanessa turns in Charity's embrace so they're facing each other, even if they can't really see in the dark. "I was sorting out stuff for the party earlier, and then it occurred to me that I'd better make sure Rhona would actually be able to come to the thing, so I headed over to speak to her and Pete had _finally _given her a ring."

"Well, that's...nice? Isn't it?" Charity yawns. "It's late, Ness, just tell me which bit I'm supposed to agree with."

"Of course it's nice. And the ring's lovely," Vanessa says, instinctively twirling her own ring round her finger with her thumb. "Not as nice as mine, mind."

"Well, you do have a fiancée who has exquisite taste," Charity puts in.

"Uh, not sure I'd go _that _far," Vanessa presses a kiss to Charity's chin to show she's teasing.

"Well, not in men, _obviously_." Charity yawns again. "C'mon, it's late, tell me what's bothering you."

"Well, it's just-" Vanessa sighs. "She doesn't seem very excited about the whole thing. And I'm worried her heart's not in it."

"Well, she's been there, done that, got the Paddy sized t-shirt, hasn't she?" Charity shifts in the bed, sliding further down under the covers. "It's not like marriage has done her any good in the past. Maybe it's no surprise that she's a bit wary, yeah?"

Her gut freezes instantly, her body reacting before her mind can catch up, as she scrabbles backwards.

"D-does that mean that y-"

"No!" Charity catches hold of her arm and tugs, stopping her from moving any further, while her other hand flails around and locates the bedside lamp, illuminating the room. They both shut their eyes tight and Charity curses. But before Vanessa can recover, Charity's sliding on top of her, moulding against her body. Vanessa blinks up at her and Charity rolls her eyes. "This is what I get for trying to have a deep and meaningful when I'm half asleep." She sighs. "I never said anything about me or how I feel about our wedding, okay? I was talking about Rhona."

"No, but-" Vanessa swallows. "You've been married three times. None of them exactly ended well, did they? So it's not like marriage has done you any favours either."

She expects Charity to sigh again, or roll her eyes, or argue. What she doesn't expect is the softest of kisses to be placed on her lips, followed by another, just as soft, and another. When Charity pulls back, the chill has left most of Vanessa's vital organs.

"I asked you to marry me, yeah?" Charity nods along with Vanessa. "Yeah, so if I didn't want to marry you, I wouldn't have asked, would I?" Not giving Vanessa a chance to answer, she carries on. "And I _definitely _wouldn't have worried myself sick about how to go about it." She tilts her head, wrinkling her nose. "And then nearly ballsed everything up by doing completely the wrong thing."

"With the right intentions," Vanessa puts in, softly.

"Yeah, well, I would hardly have put myself through all that if I wasn't _desperate _to be married to you, would I?"

Vanessa's lips turn up at the edges. "Desperate to be married to me?"

Charity nods, all traces of humour absent. "Yeah. I was then and I am now, okay?" She leans down and kisses Vanessa again. "I may not have taken out a subscription to Bridezilla Weekly, or be sending away for samples of favours right, left and centre like what you are but-" She shakes her head and smiles. "But that doesn't mean I don't care, yeah?" Her eyes drop to Vanessa's neck, and she shrugs. "It just means it's not the wedding I'm excited about. It's what comes after."

"What? The wedding night, you mean?" Vanessa asks, trying not to smile. She knows exactly what Charity means.

Narrowing her eyes, Charity tickles her side. "No, you filthy mare. I'm _talking_ about being married to you. And everything that comes with it." Charity smiles. "Forever."

There's no sign of doubt in Charity's eyes, not like there had been earlier when Rhona was talking about spending her life with Pete. All she can see reflecting back at her is love and certainty. She reaches up and cups Charity's face with both hands, drawing her into a long, slow kiss. When they part, Charity nods.

"Right, that's one crisis averted. Now, what were you saying about Rhona?"

Vanessa's touched that Charity even went back to that topic of conversation when she's so tired. She shakes her head and smiles. "Nothing. I'll deal with it tomorrow. Let's just go to sleep."

"You're sure?" Charity asks, but yawns immediately afterwards. Vanessa nods.

"Never been surer."

* * *

**Thursday**

Rhona's gone home, leaving Vanessa alone with her thoughts. She absently winds the string from one of the leftover balloons around her fingers. There's a part of her that's annoyed at herself for forcing the issue, for going through with the party when she knew Rhona had doubts. It was like she was _daring _Rhona to call it off or go all in.

But there's another part of her that feels nothing but relief that she doesn't have to see Rhona pretending anymore. So if her little nudge has helped Rhona come to this conclusion, then that's no bad thing.

Vanessa knows more than most what it's like to have to put up a front, put on an act, and pretend a relationship is working. She's also had experience of being in a relationship with Rhona that Rhona didn't want to be in. It's not healthy and it's not fair on anybody involved and she's glad it's been dealt with.

When she'd stood yesterday and listened to Rhona try to convince herself she was happy, she knew it was all wrong. That's not what love is like. Not love like she has with Charity. She's never had to try and talk herself into the fact she wants to marry Charity. It's always just been something she knew; a bone-deep certainty.

"Well, thank _God _that's all over for another year. Honestly, them AGMs just get longer and longer." Charity's voice comes from behind her and she turns to see her just as she clocks the balloon. ""I. Love. Ewe. Nice sentiment, babe, but I'm not really a sheep person." Vanessa sighs as Charity rounds the couch and takes the string out of her hands, letting the balloon go.

"They were for Rhona," Vanessa says, watching the air-filled sheep bounce off the ceiling a couple of times. When she looks back at Charity, she has one eyebrow raised in question. "Not from me, obviously."

"Well, good." Charity sits down, letting her head drop to the back of the couch and closing her eyes. "She had her chance with you and she blew it. You're all mine now."

Vanessa takes a moment just to absorb that statement while she looks at Charity's profile. And there it is again; that complete conviction that _this _is the person she wants to share her life with. The good, the bad and everything in between. There's no artifice between them, no secrets and no pretence. And she's so blooming happy about it she could cry.

Instead, she lifts Charity's arm and inserts herself underneath, cuddling into her and instantly feeling better about the whole day.

"Party's over, then?" Charity mumbles, sounding half asleep.

"Not just the party," Vanessa says. "Engagement's over. Actually, the whole relationship is over."

Charity sits up, dislodging Vanessa's hold on her and forcing her to sit up too. "You're joking."

Vanessa shakes her head. "I'm not." She shrugs, blinking rapidly against the sting of tears. "I know how to throw a party, eh?"

"Hey," Charity's voice is soft and she pulls Vanessa back into her arms. "I'm sure it wasn't your party that did it." She kisses the side of Vanessa's head. "Although, just in case, best leave our wedding planning to Megan, yeah?"

Laughing, Vanessa lifts her head to meet Charity's eyes. "Never thought I'd hear _you _say that."

Charity's smile fades. "What happened?"

"They just-" Vanessa bites her lip and shrugs. "Decided it wasn't working. Agreed to end it. All very civilised and amicable."

"Right." Charity nods. "Well, that's sensible, innit?"

"Yeah, course," Vanessa nods. "I said as much to her, that she'd made the right decision." She sighs. "I just...I wanted her to be happy, you know?" She puts a hand to her chest. "I thought, when she told me he'd asked her to marry him, I thought she'd be as happy as I am. I thought that's how people felt when they got engaged."

Charity laughs, but not unkindly. "I can confirm, from personal experience, that it doesn't always feel like this."

"No?" Vanessa whispers, heart aching for anyone who doesn't have this kind love in their life.

A gentle hand comes to cup her face and Charity shakes her head. "No, kid. Not even close."

When their lips meet, it's soft and unhurried. A kiss between two people who have forever stretching out in front of them, and know it.


End file.
